Solar-electric Mowers & Tractors
(Page 3 of 8)
August/September 2006
By George DeVault and Charles Higginson
“The kit should be very easy to assemble and should fit most 38- and 42-inch twin-blade tractors of good quality,” Edmond says.
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Electric push lawn mowers. Black & Decker sells a cordless push model for about $450, along with five corded mowers. Country Home Products’ Neuton cordless mower recently became the country’s bestseller, at about $400. Country Home Products also sells the Neuton battery-powered garden cart, with two forward speeds and reverse, 200 pound capacity and push-button controls.
Steve Gladstone, Neuton’s senior product manager, says the company is developing a solar battery charger. “The market is strong now for battery-powered products,” he says. “The interest is there, but battery-electric products cost a bit more than the gas equivalents. The selling points are convenience and ease of use, quiet operation, pollution reduction and low maintenance.”
Several companies, including Brook-stone and Sunlawn, sell battery-powered reel mowers, at prices ranging from $200 to $390 (See “Cordless Electric Lawn Mowers,” April/May 2005).
Solar-electric implements. Free Power Systems is developing a solar-electric tractor. Owner Tom Lopez, a retired aerospace engineer, says, “This new product will use existing farm attachments and will be useful for small farms, with batteries recharged by solar panels attached to its canopy.”
The company already sells two solar-powered devices. The Sun Whisper lawn mower comes standard with a 19 inch blade and a rear leaf bagger, and it recharges from a roof-mounted solar panel. The company says it is ideal for lots up to one-third of an acre. It sells for $675.
The Sun Horse is a 190-pound two-wheeled walk-behind tractor — not a tiller — that plows, cultivates and plants with attachments that mount on a quick-change tool bar. It draws electricity from a solar panel mounted on its handlebar and looks something like a tall, narrow mailbox on wheels. “It is powerful enough for tough jobs like plowing and cultivating, yet precise enough for seeding and close weeding,” Lopez says.
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